Teenage cooks crowned Young Chefs of the Year
BBCTwo teenage cooks are celebrating after being crowned Lancashire Young Chef of the Year.
The contest, at Blackburn College's Catering and Hospitality school, was judged by celebrity chef, Lisa Godwin-Allen from the Michelin-starred Northcote restaurant in Langho.
The winners were year nine pupils Connie and Noah from St Christopher's School in Accrington who served up Italian chicken and lemon tart.
Connie said it was "great" to win and cooking was "definitely" something that she would like to pursue for a career.
She said she also enjoyed the teamwork and learning new skills.
Noah said it was "brilliant to work in a proper kitchen rather than just a school kitchen", though he did get a "battle wound" burn from the oven.
Pupils, aged 13 and 14, from eight schools across Lancashire competed by preparing a main course using chicken and a seasonal dessert.
Connie and Noah's dishes of chicken roulade with an Italian theme, served with spiralised potatoes, asparagus and glazed carrots, followed by lemon tart with meringue impressed the judges.
Godwin-Allen said: "It's been an incredible experience and congratulations to all of them because they really did cook some amazing dishes".
She said there were "some very talented young individuals" whose skills were "pretty impressive".
Nearly £1m was spent on the new Scholars Kitchen and Scholars Restaurant at Blackburn College in 2024 to train hospitality workers of the future.
The facility includes a restaurant, two kitchens and a cafe, which are all staffed by the students - from front-of-house to trainee chefs.
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